’Tis the Season: Charity events getting underway

Published Jun 02, 2009

Click here to read about Graf bidding for Agassi's racquets at last year's event.

December has always been the season of giving – and getting – for tennis players, who take part in charity matches and other exhibition events during the off-season.

Many pros have their own charities and foundations and use the time as an opportunity to hold their events to raise money and awareness for their respective causes. But just like Christmas, the season seems to arrive earlier ever year. October has been a busy month for exhibitions, with Andre Agassi kicking things off with a star-studded benefit in Las Vegas.

The Twelfth Annual Grand Slam for Children on October 6 raised $8.1 million dollars, thanks in part to the slew of A-list guest which included comedian Jerry Seinfeld, Grammy winning artists Kelly Clarkson and Carlos Santana, comedian George Wallace, and musical groups Matchbox Twenty and the Goo Goo Dolls.

The evening began with a reception and dinner, followed by a live auction and concluded with a concert that featured the guest singers. Carlos Santana and Rob Thompson reunited for the evening to revive their hit single “Smooth” for the 8,000 or so guests, which included Jim Courier, Mark Philippoussis, and Paris Hilton.

Agassi’s wife and fellow tennis great, Steffi Graf was also on hand to take in the festivities at the MGM Grand Arena, as was his father, Mike.

Celebs that could not be in attendance made their presence felt by donating items for the live auction. Robin Williams contributed an invitation to his next movie premiere and after party; the “Sopranos” supported the cause with a Porsche Cayenne SUV signed by two of the show’s stars, James Gandolfini and Edie Falco; and Emeril Lagasse offered up an appetizing in-home catering of food and wine for 12, ending in a bam!

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And who says you can't combine tournament play with charity events? The Spanish Armada was out in full force at Madrid, and not just on the court. Thursday marked World Breast Cancer Day (October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month), prompting Fernando Verdasco to team up with Hard Rock Cafe in an ad campaign to create more awareness of the disease. The 23-year-old Madrid native will take part in “Rocktober,” a benefit that promotes the Asociacion Espanola Contra el Cancer (AECC, The Spanish Association Against Cancer) to raise funds and increase knowledge about the disease, which is second overall in cancer-related deaths among women. Besides appearing shirtless in print ads with a pink electric guitar, Verdasco said he would also like to co-host the AECC’s Madrid concert, one of three concerts featuring Spanish bands each of which will simultaneously be performing in Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands’ Gran Canaria. Fans lucky enough to be in Madrid for the concurrent tennis tournament could take in the concert in person or watch the live broadcast on the big screen in the Plaza Colon de Madrid, the city’s version of New York’s Times Square. "I think it is great to have such a big initiative and have the support of so many artists. The disease affects all of us," Verdasco said. He follows in the Samaritan footsteps of countryman, Tommy Robredo, who met with The Who at Wimbledon – their rock opera, Tommy, is the Spaniard’s namesake. Robredo attended the group’s concert at Wimbley Arena and later met with rock icon Pete Townsend backstage to present him with a handsome donation to the Teenage Cancer Trust, a charity based in the United Kingdom dedicated to improving the lives of teenagers and young adults living with cancer.

And who says you can't combine tournament play with charity events? The Spanish Armada was out in full force at Madrid, and not just on the court. Thursday marked World Breast Cancer Day (October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month), prompting Fernando Verdasco to team up with Hard Rock Cafe in an ad campaign to create more awareness of the disease. The 23-year-old Madrid native will take part in “Rocktober,” a benefit that promotes the Asociacion Espanola Contra el Cancer (AECC, The Spanish Association Against Cancer) to raise funds and increase knowledge about the disease, which is second overall in cancer-related deaths among women. Besides appearing shirtless in print ads with a pink electric guitar, Verdasco said he would also like to co-host the AECC’s Madrid concert, one of three concerts featuring Spanish bands each of which will simultaneously be performing in Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands’ Gran Canaria. Fans lucky enough to be in Madrid for the concurrent tennis tournament could take in the concert in person or watch the live broadcast on the big screen in the Plaza Colon de Madrid, the city’s version of New York’s Times Square. "I think it is great to have such a big initiative and have the support of so many artists. The disease affects all of us," Verdasco said. He follows in the Samaritan footsteps of countryman, Tommy Robredo, who met with The Who at Wimbledon – their rock opera, Tommy, is the Spaniard’s namesake. Robredo attended the group’s concert at Wimbley Arena and later met with rock icon Pete Townsend backstage to present him with a handsome donation to the Teenage Cancer Trust, a charity based in the United Kingdom dedicated to improving the lives of teenagers and young adults living with cancer.

Yet the surprise of the evening was that the highest selling item was none of the above the top bid was a whopping $250,000 for a Mercato del Pesce di Rialto Chandelier. The sculptured fixture spanned six feet in diameter and height and glistened with 126 components of glass crafted by famed artisan Dale Chihuly, who completed the piece after two years of work in Finland, Ireland, Mexico, and Italy.

“I am grateful that there are so many people dedicated to helping kids," Agassi said. "I'm thrilled with the turnout from the public, the generosity of our sponsors, donors and bidders, and the commitment and talent of the performers who so graciously give their time to the Grand Slam. It was one of the greatest nights of the year.”

With the bar set so high, fellow pros have their work cut out for them to match Agassi’s achievements.

Andy Roddick, who credits the American tennis icon for inspiring him to found his own charity, will be holding three events this year in three cities which he calls home. The first of which will took place last weekend in Austin, Texas, where he currently resides. The Hilton hotel hosted the Third Annual Andy Roddick Foundation Charity Gala, an evening consisting of dinner and a concert by Sir Elton John, who was the guest of honor in 2005. Roddick had participated in the Briton’s own charity WTT AIDS Tennis Event in Philadelphia the previous week. Lance Armstrong, Mia Hammnd Boyd Tinsely were also among those in attendance.

"I am truly humbled by some of the people in attendance tonight, not only for their excellence in their respective fields but the causes they stand for," said Roddick during his speech at the event. "The majority of us in here, myself included, have been blessed with amazing opportunities in our lives. It is absolutely our social responsibility to give others a chance as well. That is why you should all be proud of yourselves for being here tonight and doing your part."

Roddick will hold two more events this year, Rock N Racquets, a tennis and music hybrid event in his birthplace of Omaha, Nebraska on Dec. 14, and his Seventh Annual Charity Weekend, Dec. 8 and 9, in Boca Raton, Florida, where he honed his tennis skills as a teenager. Special guests at the two events will be Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, respectively.

Former French Open doubles champions Luke and Murphy Jensen will take time out from their television hosting duties to play host to their very own event to benefit the Jensen-Schmidt Tennis Academy for Down Syndrome, the National Down Syndrome Society and The Riviera Foundation. The Bank of the West Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic, to be held Dec. 8, will make its debut at The Riviera Tennis Club in Palms Springs, Calif. Among the guests scheduled to appear are tennis stars Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati, both making rare appearances, the recently-retired Justin Gimelstob and actors Scott Foley, Donna Mills, Eric Braedon, David Duchovny, and former Bush band front-man, Gavin Rossdale.

More events are scheduled for the jam-packed but short-lived off-season including Chris Evert’s annual Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic, Nov. 2-4 in Delray Beach, which enters its 18th year of commitment to the Chris Evert Charities. Guest will include actors Scot Foley, Candace Cameron, Chevy Chase, and John Lovitz among others, as well as tennis greats Jim Courier and Jana Novotna. President George H.W. Bush will also attend.

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